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THE IMPACT OF THE GAS TURBINE ON THE DESIGN OF MAJOR SURFACE WARSHIPS

In the last five years there has been a remarkable switch from steam turbines to gas turbines for the propulsion of the major warships which are being designed for the Navies of the world. These gas turbines are generally based on aero engines which have been developed to a very high standard for the aircraft industry. The use of gas turbines has brought many new problems for the warship designer, particularly in the design of the down-takes and the uptakes and in the great heat discharged from the funnel. These drawbacks have to be weighted against some remarkable improvements in ship availability and ship operation, and a reduction in engineroom complement and in through-life cost. This paper outlines the history of these developments and the bold decision by the Royal Navy in 1967 to go for 100% gas trubine propulsion for all of its future warships. The results of that decision can now be evaluated as the first ships of the new gas turbine Navy are far enough advanced to enable a comparison to be made with existing steam turbine warships. The effects on displacement, fuel consumption, layout, complement, upkeep, cost and ship operation are discussed and it is shown that the advantages derived from the use of gas turbines decisively outweigh the disadvantages and that a significant advance has been made in the design of warships. /AUTHOR/